Galerie Galerie is an online platform which aims to disseminate contemporary web art. They will be launching their fourth rendition of their showcase CHAUD MAINTENANT (Hot Right Now) on September 1st, 2022.
As an ever-evolving subject of contemporary interest, web art is defined as a multitude of creations, including but not limited to video games, 3D animation, experimental interactions with 3D software, interactions between IRL artworks and digitization, and webcam recordings. With their upcoming showcase, they hope to reiterate their desire to form a structured presentation where artists can present their work without fear of being lost in an algorithm. I spoke with Marie-Charlotte, one of the founders of Galerie Galerie, and she explained that their goal is to foster an alternative space where web artists share their creations in a more tangible and focused environment; one which may be defined as more holistic and innovative than ubiquitous platforms like Tik Tok and Instagram.
First launched in Montreal six years ago, Galerie Galerie began as a DIY space founded by three women in their twenties. As they consistently developed their ambitions with Galerie Galerie, they have witnessed their collective gain international notoriety while continuing to foster their values and local networks. CM(HRN) will feature works by 11 contemporary artists in and outside of their Montreal locale. The artists were selected based on an application process, and include experimental web developer & painter/sculpturist Antoine Thériault, multimedia performance artist Océane Buxton, and multidisciplinary photographer & digital artist VahMirè.
Their works will be assembled into a video screening which will be accessible online, as well as launched in person on September 1st. The IRL event is out of the norm for Galerie Galerie, but after three years of liminal isolation and pandemic stresses, they desire to create an opportunity for artists and audiences to meet up and reconnect as a community.
Artistic Practices which are web-based are transmogrifying at a speed which has made the online art world at times muddled and difficult to navigate. The common narrative tends to be tied to the growing accessibility of web art, which begs the question if anyone can create web art, how do we administer value and legitimize an artist’s work? Galerie Galerie creates a space that is mandated by the divulgence away from the de-valorization of web art. Instead, they work collectively towards creating what Marie-Charlotte defines as an opportunity to question established systems of artistic dissemination, and to create a permeable conversation between a body of work and an audience seeking content which is crafted to be enjoyed contextually, and for more than a few seconds before an instinctive scroll.
IRL: On September 1rst, Parc Laurier, Montreal QC | https://goo.gl/maps/jfBzF1cEC2cPLQ5b8, at 8:00 p.m.
URL: From September 2nd to September 30th at www.galeriegalerieweb.com
Lucy Earle is a freelance writer with an interdisciplinary background in urban studies and performance art.
Her work explores themes related to presence, public space, apparitions, and the grotesque. She goes by the pseudonym Shania Mark Twain to express her obsession with country-pop music and satire.